College Football Games were played on the York Fairgrounds during the York Fair
Football at York Collegiate Institute; predecessor to York College
![Postcard of York Fairgrounds Race Track [very late 1800s or very early 1900s] (From Postcard Collection of S. H. Smith)](/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2014/09/FairTrack.jpg)
The following article appears in the Thursday, October 5th, 1899, issue of The York Daily. This early sports article gives details about the College Football Game played between Dickinson College Reserves and the York Collegiate Institute teams on Wednesday morning at the York Fairgrounds during the York Fair. For easier reading, I’ve transcribed everything, following the original article:
A not very interesting game of football was played on the fair grounds yesterday morning, between the Dickinson College Reserves and the York Collegiate Institute teams. The boys lined up at 10 o’clock and it was very evident that the Institute was far outweighed. The first half went off with a rush, and for a time honors were about even. The Dickinson men made good gains through the line, but when they tried the ends they were stopped by the fine tackling of both Jessop and Yost. With only 10 seconds to play Dickinson got the ball over the first touch-down but failed to kick the goal.
In the second half our boys weakened and the weight of their opponents began to tell. Wareheim and Yost, of the Institute, were both injured so that they had to be taken out. Wooster finally got through for a long run and a touchdown. The playing of the Institute boys from here out was decidedly ragged, although they showed pluck to the end and kept their opponents down to two more touch-downs.
The Dickson team had good interference and had no difficulty in gaining with the guards back formation.
The line-up was as follows:
- Y.C.I. D.C.R.
- Jessop . . . . . left end . . . . . Schuman.
- Fisher . . . . . left tackle . . . . Johnson.
- Dise . . . . . . . left guard . . . . . Sloan.
- E. Myers . . . . centre . . . . . . Gillespie.
- D. Myers . . . . right guard . . . . Hoke.
- Wareheim . . . right tackle . . . . Brooks.
- Yost . . . . . . . . right end . . . . . . . Smith.
- Cook . . . . . . . . quarter . . . . . . . . Wood.
- Kennard . . . . left half-back . . . . Wooster.
- Garrison . . . . right half-back . . . . Arthur.
- Eyster . . . . . . . . full-back . . . . . . . . Norris.
Touthdowns—Smith 2, Woolsey 2. Goals—Wood 2. Dickinson 22, Y.C.I. 0, Umpire—W. J. Rothermel. Timers—Samuel K. McCall and J. Howard Manifold. Linesmen—Wm. Mullholland and Edw. W. Spangler.
The Intercollegiate Football scoring rules for 1899, awarded 5 points for a touchdown, 1 point for successfully kicking the goal following a touchdown, and 2 points for a safety. Resulting in the score of 22 for Dickinson; i.e. 4 touchdowns and 2 successful kicking the goal following touchdowns.
The following are a few early college football milestones, from my post George S. Billmeyer; All American Football Player in 1869. In 1880, the number of players on the field, from each team, was lowered to 11; as we have today. In 1882, the rule of using yards and downs was added; requiring a team to make 5 yards in 3 downs. In 1906 the forward pass was legalized; 37 years after the first college football game! And it took until 1912 for the rules refinement to the present system we now have: 4 downs to make 10 yards.
The following article from the December 3rd, 1903, issue of The York Daily provided a glimpse into the football teams of the York Collegiate Institute.
The Athletic Association of the York Collegiate Institute met Tuesday after school in the afternoon. Manager Logan of the foot-ball team made his report, which was far above the expectations of the association. The association decided to make a trophy room out of the present music room on the third floor, putting the pictures of the foot-ball teams for the past ten years on the wall with the foot-balls encased in the centre of the room.
A meeting of the foot-ball team of the York Collegiate Institute was called Tuesday to elect a captain and a manager for the next year’s team. Katz was elected as captain, while Logan was ushered to the managers chair.
The article implies that football started at the York Collegiate Institute about 1893. Carol McCleary Innerst included a photo of the 1902 Y.C.I. football team on page 79 of her book: York College of Pennsylvania, in The Campus History Series. Quoting two lines from that photo caption:
YCI dropped football either after the 1905 season or the 1912 season when the coaches decided that the boys were too light and inexperienced to withstand the “buffeting” received in games. YCI apparently did not field a team again until the 1920s.
Also on page 79, the caption on a 1899 photo of the YCI Athletic Association reveals the likely given names, or initial, of a few of the football players from the 1899 game:
- Joseph Fisher . . . . left tackle
- E. Myers . . . . . . . . centre
- D. Myers . . . . . . . . right guard
- Fred Yost . . . . . . . right end
- H. Kennard . . . . . . left half-back
- R. Garrison . . . . . right half-back
Related posts include:
- Birds Eye View of Original York Fairgrounds Site
- York Fair Grounds Particulars from 1877
- Yorker played in First College Football Game
- When the York Roses defeated the Ravens in Pro Football
- 75 Years Ago, Joe Bury sells Four and a Half TONS of Hamburgers at the York Fair
- George S. Billmeyer; All American Football Player in 1869
- Take me out to the Ballgame of Yesteryear
- The Great Potato Chip Battle; Martin’s versus Utz
- Cliff Satterthwaite artwork drawn at YORK FAIR
- Animals Run Wild at YORK FAIR
- Bingo Banned at YORK FAIR; Cliff Satterthwaite explains his Artwork
- Numbers Game at the YORK FAIR
- The Mighty Atom entertained at the YORK FAIR for over Five Decades
- YORK FAIR Finger Ring Mementos crafted by The Mighty Atom
- Red Lion Fair ran 8 Days in August of 1924
